Do You Feel Like A Ditz Because You Love Fashion?
Posted by: Leonora Epstein
Filed in:
style
11:20AM, Thursday October 15th 2009
“Fashion trends speak volumes about the human condition and wordlessly point us towards the zeitgeist,” writes South Africa Times columnist Jacquie Myburgh. Huh? They do?
Ms. Myburgh, like many a fashion journalist, didn’t originally seek a career in the style world, acknowledging the frivolous-sounding nature of such work. She explains: “Telling your parents you want to go into fashion is right down there with acting and air hostessing on their list of favorites.” But, over the years, she’s come to understand its importance in society, when, especially in an economic downturn, our instincts are to shun conspicuous spending and get back to less “superficial” activities.
However, maybe we should start taking the fashion industry more seriously.
Myburgh points to some convincing evidence: Credit card surveys show that consumers plan fashion purchases as their number-one choice, and artistic advances in the field were especially strong this year.
This is not to cue some Miranda Priestly sermon on how cerulean blue has everything to do with your entire life, but it’s clear that the fashion industry’s role in economic re-growth is accelerating and the dialogue about “what fashion means” has been more prevalent than ever. We wouldn’t exactly put it in such academic terms as the Times, but we would hope that maybe this signals the end of the ditz era—that the woman who loves to shop can still be smart and doesn’t have to pretend she’s not interested. Thoughts? [TimesLive.co.za]
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Molly Jean
wrote on October 15 2009 @ 10:56 am: [report]
This post is great! My simple answer to the question: no. But, if I were one of those women whose “love for fashion” consisted of hoarding designer labels & showing them off in order to get some kind of shallow acceptance from other women, than yes.
See I love fashion. I love it for its craftsmanship & artistry. I love that something can go from a sloppy pencil rendering to a clean sketch, to a pattern, then to fabric. I love knowing how many hands touched it in the process of its construction. I love knowing that a place or a moment or a song or a look inspired someone to get off their ass, sketch, then convince someone else to make it, buy it & wear it. I love knowing that 1 dress on a Paris couture runway took 3 months to make.
I love reading about fashion in magazines/books, looking at it on the runway/on the bus, etc. I love the fact that I can get a whole outfit from the thrift store & look better in it that some woman who spent a fortune for her clothes at the mall. I love fashion for all these reasons, none of which are ditsy (at least I don’t think so).
risatrix
wrote on October 15 2009 @ 11:36 am: [report]
I too appreciate the artistry and craftmanship of fashion. I love looking at magazines that show beautiful clothes. I sew, so I appreciate a well-made garment, a well-chosen fabric, etc.
But for me there’s a big difference between loving clothes and trying to look your best—for which women unfairly get labeled ditzy—and supporting the fashion industry, which basically refuses to acknowledge that women are shaped like well…women.
For this reason, the fashion industry itself doesn’t deserve to be taken seriously unless it starts making clothes that most women can wear.
Lynn
wrote on October 15 2009 @ 11:51 am: [report]
I love clothes. I like feeling pretty and I really like my ability to transform and express myself in new ways every day. But yeah, I’ll admit, I feel like I can’t talk about that stuff unless I know the person well. I know that my boyfriend or my mom or my best friend won’t think I’m unintelligent because I squeal “what an awesome dress!” but if I just met someone, I keep those comments to myself and even purposefully dress down. I want them to realize there is more there than clothes before I let them know that clothes are fun to me, too.